


Hunted down

by Gentrychild



Series: Ascalon [5]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Dementor, Gen, Monsters living among us, Urban Fantasy, kind of, remnant, varied monsters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-05
Updated: 2018-06-01
Packaged: 2019-05-02 16:50:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14549106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gentrychild/pseuds/Gentrychild
Summary: A soul eater. A remnant. Riley.A hero. A Valentine. Lucas.The Prince. Unknown. Mallory.In a world where monsters live among us, hidden behind a thin mask, Riley thought she was at the top of the food chain.She is wrong.





	1. Chapter 1

_What price would you pay for all your wishes to come true ?_

Among the thick trees of the national park, the moonlight wasn't enough to light the way and the only thing keeping Riley from being smothered by the darkness was the flashlight of the woman she was following. Not that Inez Alvarez noticed it, probably too focused on her goal to notice the sound of the dead leaves screaming under the soles of Riley's sneakers. Despite her desire to be a shadow among the shadows, she had slipped once, but was fortunate enough to be caught by a tree before touching the ground. Her arm still hurt.

The pain throbbing in her forearm wasn't why her fist was clenched, the knuckles white and her nails starting to pierce the skin.

Inez was a woman on a mission, and haunted by what she had lost. That made her dangerous. After fighting for her country, and surviving a war and the damages it brought to a human mind, she had come back home only to learn she had lost it in a fire. Her family house, the garage she was supposed to work on, the family business which had always be there to support them. The last nail to the coffin was the assurance refusing to pay for the damages.

Some people would have crumbled, crying in the arms of the rest of her family until exhaustion claimed them, but not Inez. Because she had to fix what happened, not because she felt guilty, but because she was the only one strong enough to pay the price. So here she was, in the middle of the night in a park she didn't know, with only a flashlight to show her the way to pay any price.

Riley found it foolish, but of course, she didn't have any wishes strong enough to bring this kind of fervor. Maybe things were different when you had something you loved so much you were ready to sacrifice anything for it. Or maybe she was more jaded because she knew what 'anything' truly meant.

_Let me out._

_Not now_ , she whispered to herself.

The darkness was retreating as they were reaching the edge of the forest. Riley's heart was beating loudly in her ear, a rush of energy coursing through her limbs. It was going to happen now, even if she hadn't be ready for it, she would have realized it.

Inez hesitated just as she was about leave the haven of the trees. The location wasn't important, it was the threshold, the in-between. Her despair had called something, and that would allow her to cross to somewhere else.

Riley licked her lips. There was a taste of iron in her mouth.

Inez wasn't the only one on a mission. So was Riley.

A rescue mission.

Inez took a deep breath. Riley saw her steel herself, and she took the last two steps.

Riley ran, holding _everything_ inside her in a iron will, and jumped just as the silver light of the moon was turning crimson. When her feet touched the ground again, they found only dust. The national park was no more, only dead trees as tall as some houses, dust and rock and a red sky. She breathed slowly, and the air was heavy and rough in her lungs.

_You're not supposed to breathe the air from this place. If the stories are true, breathe too much of it and it will change you from the inside._

At sixty feet from her, maybe, Inez had fallen to her knees, clutching her chest as she tried to adapt to the alien air. She was back on her feet almost immediately, but she looked like she was about to fall over at anytime.

And then she saw Riley. She froze as a twenty-three-year-old woman was standing among the desolation of another world, wearing a dark shirt, ripped jeans, and sneakers who had seen better days. It clearly wasn't what Inez was expecting to see, and she as she was about to talk, her eyes went down and she leaned back a little. Riley followed her gaze, and only at this moment did she realize her hand was bleeding.

She slowly unclenched her fist, pain throbbing on her palm as she finally realized her nails had left half moon marks on the skin. More blood fled, so red, and she swiped it on her jeans.

_Something rose inside her, violent and furious because she was hurt, in pain, and that meant something was wrong.With the ease born from a lifetime dealing with this, she stopped it before it reached outside, and went beyond by shoving it back, completely out of sight and almost inaccessible._

_Not now_ , she repeated to herself.

''No, I am not the one who called you here,'' confirmed Riley before indicated with a tilt of the head what was appearing behind Inez.

The military medic spun towards their host, just as Riley took a step back. She wanted distance, and a voice in her reptilian brain was telling her to run even though she knew it was vain. No haven and nowhere to hide here, just the playground of one of those creatures who were called by pain. Old things whose mouths watered when people were torn apart by misery, and they always seemed to be there when bad choices seemed the only option available.

Whatever it was, it didn't arrive, or appear. It was as if the foul air, the red light, and the dust had taken materialize into something else. Riley could see something taller than her, larger probably, but that was all she could grasp. A maelstrom of color and changing shape was in front of her, something a human mind couldn't grasp, and she had to force herself not to look away.

Inez didn't bother. She fell to her knees, maybe as a show of respect, maybe because she just realized how far away from home and the physics law she was. The guardian of the realm hold out his arm, touching her even though he wasn't supposed to be so close.

The supplicant took her chance, desperate to speak before Riley. Those were the rules : you had to say what you wanted to be heard.

''I wish...''

'' _ **I know**_ ,'' a voice that came from a guardian but also resonated from all around them.

Or not.

Still holding Inez, he focused on Riley, almost gleefully. Inez was squirming under the contact, so it couldn't be nice, but old things were possessive of their potential contractors.

And ruthless when it came to those who didn't follow the rules.

'' _ **You, were not invited. You cheated, ready to steal another's chance. You came here without my permission. And without my permission, there is no contract between us, and no protection.**_ ''

Pressure slammed into her from every directions, the realm itself. The air locked itself inside Riley's lungs, and no sound came out as she opened her mouth. It would play with her, then it would crush her, but she doubted it would let her die. But at no point was Riley scared.

She let go and the world went cold.

_Finally._

Inez yelped as unnatural cold touched her. The guardian of the realm himself froze, feeling the touch of something more ancient and hungrier, and it was as if the realm itself tried to take a step back from what had sneaked into their home.

Riley sprinted in the dead world. Everything had changed as she wasn't hiding anymore, her real senses spreading, feeling the energy around them. Usually, there would be warmth where emotions and traces of life lingered, and the cold inside her would pull it to her. Instead, there were only tree lights, Inez's pure light, The guardian's burning one, and something so vast and so powerful, the will of the realm itself, the monster who couldn't be seen.

Her will crashed against the will of the guardian, gnawing at his meek defenses and breaching it to access his life. Warmth, delicious golden warmth she grabbed with her mind and fed upon as he screamed, the sound ripping in the air.

She rammed into him like the world's less gracious quarterback and they both fell, dust exploding everywhere as they touched the ground. The contact sent vibrations through her body, painful ones.

She pushed through the pain. She had worse. It was worth it. Always.

''I want him back !'' she growled and the realm heard her.

The entity touched her, but by doing so, she was able to each it. It drew back as she ripped pieces of life from it. She laughed as warmth filled her, and the cold spread further.

She took more from the guardian. Feeding was like living in the cruelest cold, numb without it making disappear the anguish completely, and then it stopped. You felt fine. You felt unstoppable. And as she did, pain disappeared,

''I am not letting him go,'' she threatened.

Once upon a time, she was starving, keeping herself from inflicting too much damage by sustaining herself. It had changed. She had grown older, stronger, but even if the hunger wasn't biting anymore, it didn't mean it was gone. The nature itself of her power made her insatiable.

Whatever had taken refuge here had devoured anything, leaving no trace behind. She almost felt a fond kinship to it, but there was a lack of ambition to it. It fed on pain, misery, hopelessness, while she fed on everything. But it was mighty, a will so much more powerful than her and should have been protected from her hunger.

If he hadn't needed a guardian to bring preys back to it. If it hadn't given him power and an access. If it hadn't given her a way to channel her power through him, even though she was killing him by doing so.

And there was so much to take.

The choice was clear. Letting Riley destroy everything, feed on all this energy painfully earned through a multitude of deals and suffering, or letting the host go, because she wasn't living without him. The guardian wasn't important. Only the realm mattered.

The guardian screamed between her hands, the last surge of strength of a dying prey. She took more, warmth filling her.

_She would feed on everything he had. Every crumbs of warmth, the last of his life, until the frail thing broke between her hands. Then she would come for the realm itself, gnawing at it, taking her time. A entity as large as a world had to make a good meal._

Something broke. She felt the shock rippling through all of them, as if they were linked, and for a moment, she didn't know if it was the guardian, Inez, who she had grabbed by reflex, or her humanity.

And suddenly, they were on the real ground in the real world, a few feet away from the trees Riley and Inez had left. The cold was so powerful mist was appearing when she was breathing, and she slowly dragged the geist into herself, before unclenching her fingers from what used to be a guardian of a lost realm.

Nathan Sherwood, fifteen years-old, seeming even younger, was breathing under her, his eyes not gazing at anything. Numb because a mantle of magic was ripped from him, but not broken, either by him or by the influence of the geist.

He had disappeared three months ago, making a deal in exchange of power, and his mother had come to Ascalon, the organization Riley was working for. Even now that he was back, he was changed forever. People touched by this kind of influence could never completely go back to normal.

It was a price Celia Sherwood was willing to pay.

Riley stood up before the teenager she just rescued died of suffocation under her weight, and called Ascalon. They needed an ambulance, she wouldn't be able to carry him or even to give him the basic care someone traumatized needed.

And it wasn't as if he was the only one in a sorry state. The bait she had used to sneak her way into a hidden realm was on the ground.

''You're one of them ?'' Inez cried quietly without anything registering in her voice. Her face barely moved, but tears flowed freely. It was like she didn't have the strength to consciously react anymore.

_I am worse._

Instead, Riley fished a business card out of her back pocket. On it, a name, Ascalon, and a phone number.

''I am sorry.''

Inez just looked at her. Riley crouched down by her and took her hand, before placing the card in her hand and making her gently close her fist.

''Call these people. They are here to help people like you, even concerning your mortgage.''

''How do you know about that ?''

_I spied on you and assisted to your slow descent into insanity._

Riley shrugged. In another hand, her phone, and she had just sent a message to back ups. They would find her location and come with the usual specialists.

''You took the deal maker. That means no one can grant wish anymore...''

''Don't worry about that. In a couple of days, a week at most, another lost soul will be convinced to take the mantle.''

Riley stood up, mentally checking on the kid. Light steady, though she had made a number on him. He would live, but wouldn't be lively for a while.

''You can take your chance then. But they will ask for a price you're convinced you can pay. They will change you and feed on your struggle. Until you lost it, and what you came here for won't matter anymore. And from what I saw, the first one contractors kill are those they loved.''

Riley saw the hope die in her eye, and felt it change into something else. Warmth, ki, energy, flying to her, and making her stronger as she fed on it.

''I won't prevent you from coming back here. But I can already tell you it's not worth it.''

 

*

 

He was laying down on the floor of the warehouse, among the stench of rotting flesh and dried blood. The anguish was slowly receding but he didn't move, keeping his strength in case it was back. They did that, letting them hope, better to crush it.

It was worth it, of course. It was for a greater purpose.

He realized it was over when he heard the steps of a woman wearing heels, which meant India was back. It also meant he was the only one still alive among the twelve candidates, but it seems accessory.

India walked to him, two of her hounds on her heels, and she crouched by him, not bothered by the smell and the global bloodshed. She tenderly caressed his face, and even though he knew he didn't deserve it, it couldn't help to appreciate it.

''You are so strong, Echo.''

Echo. That name was why they had endured so many trials. The last one was mental, bearing anguish until being used to it. Human minds usually broke when so much happened to it, but it had been done gradually.

Still, that was how the others died. The one who didn't succumb to a heart attack had done the deed themselves, one by one.

''Are you ready ?'' India asked.

Of course.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Be nice. Let them forget what you are.

  


Riley was not the most patient person, especially in the morning. She had forgotten her badge, which could happen with three hours of sleep, and a hell of a night, so she had to pass through the security post, also known as the gates of Hell. Orpheus himself had less problems trying to get out of the underworld.

The headquarter of Ascalon was in a building in New York, built to survive anything the supernatural world would throw at it, apocalypse included. Anyone could access the first floor as long as the doors were open, and Ascalon actually encourage the people under the protection of the cabal to come whenever they wanted. However, no unauthorized person could access the others floor. Riley usually appreciated that, but without her badge, she had to submit herself to this soul crushing treatment.

She had been sitting on her bike for fifteen minutes as a guard was checking her identity. Even though there was two truebloods in this cabal, and the other one was a male grumpy cat who had taken a human form, so she thought she would be recognized easily.

She was wrong.

The guardian made a point to look at the screen of his tablet, checking the list which had to include her name. Even if it didn't, one phone call would take care of the problem, but he was making her wait.

''Riley... Riley...'' he pretended to search, her driver licence still in hand.

She slowly pulled the warmth he was emitting to her, letting the delight spread through her veins and her bones. She wasn't feeding at the source, so he wouldn't notice anything except a slight diminution of temperature.

If Riley did, it would be slow as something cold but who had nothing to do with the weather would hold him, going through his skin and reached the marrow of his bones. Slowly, it would feel in distress with no cause, not understanding what was happening. It was like being mentally in agony but not having the mean to realize you were in pain.

But that was the long way and people from the underground knew about predators like her, and they would flee as soon as they would sense her influence.

So the other way. Crush any resistance and feast onto the warmth of the soul, like some animal cracking an egg to access the yolk. Death was a matter of second after that, she only had to breach the wall. Will against will and she doubted he was stronger than her. It would only take an instant.

But it wasn't like she was thinking about it...

The guardian gave him a compassionate look that wouldn't have convinced a blind man. He didn't seem older than her, and she couldn't feel the burning quality of someone powerful enough to be awakened and stop aging.

''I'm sorry, I am not finding you right now. Do you usually work here on Saturday ?''

_Let's eat him._

She hold that thought without rejecting it.

''You are obviously new,'' Riley smiled.

''Well...''

''That wasn't a question, because if not, you would have let me pass as soon as I gave my name and an ID.''

''So, you're saying you're the agent Riley and I am just supposed to take your word for it ?''

She just stared at him.

And then she _nudged_  him.

The guardian jumped as the geist took a quick but big sip. Riley was actually pleased when she saw him go white.

''Do you want me to actually prove my identity ?'' she asked in a sweet voice, something else haunting her eyes.

  


*

  


The head of the war hammer made an arch as Gillian made it fall with an incredible force on the box, making the table underneath vibrate because of the impact. With a grunt, she did it again and again, ruthless as she dedicated herself to her goal. The metal table shrieked, and a dent clearly appeared underneath.

Riley just watched, strangely fascinated, while holding a plastic bag.

Gillian raised the hammer once again, perfectly stable despite her high heels, but realized Riley was here. Had been here for a time. She lowered the medieval weapon, and smiled at her !

''Hey ! I didn't expect you to see on a week-end !''

Gillian was a beautiful woman whose grand parents came from India, tall like a model, with long flowing black hair and dark eyes gleaming with humor and intelligence. Girly to the tips of her nails, apart from the fact she was currently holding a hammer, she always wore beautiful dresses and high heels that made Riley's ankles hurt just by looking at them. She had once explained to Riley she wore higher heels each time someone told her she was too tall to wear them.

''This,'' she said while pointing at the metal box who didn't even had a dent in it, ''is an artifact found in a warehouse belonging to a cabal we... chased out of the state. It's protected against any energy coming from the Depths, against arcanes, and by anything coming from any member from the underground. And it's completely sealed, so I thought raw kinetic impact could maybe open it.''

''So you decided to hit it with a hammer.''

''It's science !''

The genius carefully put the war hammer of the table as if it was fragile and eyed the plastic bag with greed, _shining_ brighter as her interest was picked by something else. Riley loved being around her, it was like being in the presence of a disco ball in term of energy.

''I am sure there is a a lot of people with super strength in this building...'' Riley spread her senses, and felt the two familiar beacon of light, Mallory and Lucas, above them. ''Including Lucas, who can't be doing anything important. Why don't you ask one of them to hold the hammer ?''

''Where is the fun in that ?''

Riley stopped teasing her and hold out the plastic bag. Gillian rushed to her, a huge smile on her face as she took the pair of dirty sneakers into her gloved hands.

''Oh my god ! They are covered in dust from a lost realm, I'm sure I can analyse it to discover the composition ! We know it can change the human organism if exposed to it for too long, but we have no idea why because it's so hard to bring back samples !''

_Yes, because everything is trying to kill you in those places._

''You're insane,'' Riley said fondly.

''It's called passion !'' Gillian said without missing a beat. ''Also, did you just use your remnant radar to see who was in the building ? Don't you feel the need to feed when you do that ?''

''No, I don't. Not when I am not starving and it's been years since hunger has hurt me.''

Gillian started brushing the sneakers to collect the dust, excited like a child on Christmas Eve, even though she was forty. She was one of those people who knew of the underground because someone had told them about it, and had jumped at the occasion to study its mechanisms as another side of science. She was also one of Mallory's students back when he was teaching but she didn't like to talk about it. As far as she was concerned, the only use of the past was to contaminate the present.

Gillian eyed her with that crazy glint of mad scientist in the eye. Riley braced herself.

''About this blood sample...'' she asked while making puppy eyes.

Fortunately, Riley didn't have a soul, the only way to be immune.

''Maybe when I'm dead,'' she decided in a surge of generosity.

Gillian pouted, but didn't give up.

''Also, I made a protocol to test what happens when you feed on someone...''

''Nope.''

''I am a volunteer !''

Riley simply left. You didn't talk with crazy.

''Then, Lucas is my favorite !'' Gillian threatened as she was leaving her lab.

''We both know it's not true !'' Riley smiled.

After all, she didn't came on a Saturday morning only to drop a pair of dirty sneakers. Something even more evil than the enthusiasm of a scientist had invoked her during a week-end : paperwork.

The Underground was the entire community of gifted people, most of them being not so different than regular human beings, but unable to be protected by the rules of society. After all, hard to be convicted for stealing someone life force because he had made someone wait at a check point or crushing someone's car because Karen had cheated for her kid's science project, winning the contest.

Riley rolled her eyes at the memory.

Cabals had formed in order to ''protect'' the gifted, but actually to take their dime with the feeble promise of not abusing to much their wards, no worth more than supernatural cabals. A few years ago, Ascalon had been formed in order to protect the gifted fairly, making deals with law enforcement agencies, offering protection in exchange of modest taxes calculated according to the salaries and their expenses, and was slowly driving antagonizing cabals out of their ever growing territory.

Their success was based on the fact they were actually not assholes, how their leader's gift might have been the ability to produce unlimited funds, and the presence of two truebloods who served as nuclear deterrents. Tall, dark and annoying belongs to a clan of heroes whose gift whose to be able to kill anyone and anything, adored by all the gifted. Remnants were cataclysms no one could actually stop, were the less charming cousins of the dementors from Harry Potter, destroyed civilizations, and had been all dead for centuries. Riley's existence was the proof nature had a terrifying sense of humor and that recessive genes were not to be underestimated.

Lucas and Riley had an amusing relationship. She knew he could kill her if she one day became a threat, and he realized she would live on as an hungry ghost unable to die once again and more voracious than ever. Hence a strange friendship full of sarcasm.

Riley climbed three flights of stairs to the Valhalla of the building whose door was always opened. She entered into the office who was about the size of a college student's apartment, which made sense since Mallory practically lived here. He smiled when she entered, and immediately stopped working. He was about to get up, which he always did when a woman entered a room, but Riley made him sign not to.

A tall man, late thirties, early forties, neat blond hair and there was something about him that inspired trust, but that didn't make less dangerous. A good man's wrath was something to fear.

Lucas was here too, though she was only seeing the back of his head as he had fallen asleep on his chair and was using Mallory's desk as a pillow. The warmth coming from him, _delicious, so strong, all this life_ , meant he was awake, if only to protect Mallory from any threat, so he was probably only being dramatic.

She made a beeline to the coffee machine and the Jamaica Blue Mountain beans Mallory was buying for Lucas, and that he was only sharing with a few chosen ones : those he liked and Riley because he couldn't stop her.

''What are you all doing here on a Saturday morning ?''

Some of them had to have social life, right ? At least, she hoped.

Or not. When Lucas made dinner, he only invited people from Ascalon.

''He didn't leave,'' Lucas groaned without moving.

Riley stopped on her tracks and gave Lucas a look of pure sympathy. He had clearly refused to leave Mallory's side and spent the night here in order to make him feel guilty.

''I had to do the follow-up on the Sherwood boy,'' Mallory defended himself.

Riley nodded, then stopped as she remembered something.

''Didn't I call you around midnight about him ?'' she asked.

Mallory seemed almost sheepish at that, and Lucas deigned to rise from the desk in order to glare at their boss. Lucas was Ascalon's chief of security, and had started as Mallory's bodyguard, then had simply refused to stop protecting him.

Mallory made a point to ignore him and focused on Riley : ''Please, sit.''

''No, coffee.'' she said and ignored Lucas' glare. She started preparing the pot of coffee as Mallory had the look of a master of a cabal who was asking himself what went wrong in his life for none of his employee to try to pretend he was in charge.

''First, congratulations for bringing Nate Sherwood back home. I wasn't even sure if it was possible. He will be followed by our specialists for as long as necessary. I also integrated him to one of our foster home.''

Riley nodded. Ascalon didn't just grant requests, they also made sure to do follow-ups.

''The mother is abusive ?'' Riley asked.

''No but her boyfriend has a temper, there is a medical record, and I refuse to believe a teenager would run to a hidden realm in a fit of rebellion. He is staying under our care until we clear the situation.''

The coffee was heating and she eyed a pink box who after examination, contained chocolate donuts.

'' I asked Lucas to put them away five hours ago,'' Mallory explained. ''They are addictive.''

''Feel free to bring them back,'' Lucas said while passing a hand in his black hair.

Finally, Lucas helped her bring everything back to the desk since he didn't trust her with three steaming mugs. There was something about the way he moved was just a little wrong, too graceful, too fluid, and most people weren't at ease, not understanding but realizing at some fundamental level they were in the presence of a predator.

Riley didn't mind because the geist has pretty much shot her nerves since she had started experiencing the hunger, but had notice one time she was standing next to him. She was leaning on the wall, but he was standing straight, showing not the slightest sign of weariness. He could have stayed standing all day, without any discomfort.

Others minded without realizing. If they didn't, the Valentine tag brought awe.

''When I asked you to take care of this case,'' Mallory noticed, ''I told you you could ask for anything.''

''And I did,'' Riley answered.

Mallory grabbed his mug without using the handle, not bothered by the burning ceramic. She had also see him catch a falling knife without any fear. She was curious, but asking about gifts was one of the few social faux pas of the underground.

And they all had secrets.

''You asked for tech support to find a bait, and jumped on your own into another reality,'' Mallory said dryly.

Riley nodded and waited for him to get to the point by nibbling on her donuts. Chocolate was a piece of heaven.

''I expected you to take actual backups. Why do none of you work well in a team ?''

''Because most people eye-hand coordination is pathetic so I like to be out their firing line,'' Lucas explained.

''I had to mass feed for Sherwood to be released, and I am not subtle. I had to limit the collateral damages.''

Riley thought about something clever to say.

''That's actually a good excuse. I don't believe you for a second, but that's a good one.''

Riley shrugged : ''As long as you can't prove it.''

She didn't trust people armed with guns at her back. A memory from college.

''My second point is Inez Alvarez. I don't like the way you used her.''

''She was going to take the deal anyway.''

''She was about to take jump and you let her access the roof.''

''And I canceled gravity before she touched the ground. Also, I have a strict policy of letting people who made their bed to let them lay in it.''

Mallory stared at her, really calm. ''By your logic, Nate Sherwood should have be left where he was. He made a deal, after all.''

''He is a child, unable to understand what he was risking, and thus to give consent. She wasn't. She is an adult, I gave her all the facts, and I can't save her from herself.''

Mallory was a knight in shining armor, who needed to fix problems and to help people in need because he shared their pain by pure empathy. He also believed people were good, just making bad decisions because of bad situations.

Riley was more apathetic. She didn't have grand beliefs about good or bad. But she believed in free will.

Mallory spoke calmly, warmth in his voice, but the order was still underlining the words : ''In the future, you keep people like her in place until specialists who can help arrive. I want everything you have about her. She joined the underground as soon as she tried to make a deal, so she is under my protection.''

Riley reached her bag and took the file she had written this night before dropping it on Mallory's desk. He blinked, clearly not expecting that.

''I also gave her your card and a job offer,'' she added.

Riley was also really good at her job.

Because she loved it.

She stood up, grabbing another donuts for the road. ''Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go to lunch.''

It was sadly without counting Lucas. ''I have a favor to ask !''

Riley waited for pigs to fly, for the trumpets to ring, and for a general apocalypse to happen.

''People have been burned to death, and we have no lead. The heat source has the shape of a hand.'' He hesitated, as if the words were about to burn his tongue. ''Maybe Alexia knows something ?''

Alexia was a knowledge broker touched by the Depths. No one actually knew what she could do or what was her goal, as she appeared to people she chooses, sometimes to help them, sometimes to destroy them. She dealt in favors, never forgot anything, and Lucas was trying to avoid asking her directly because there was a price to be paid. Except for Riley.

She was Riley's best friend after all.

  


  


 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am watching you.

 

Once upon a time, gods walked upon the earth, until they died, and even Death was not enough to stop them. Their power equaled their hunger, something insatiable that made them destroy civilizations until it grew so much that they turned on each other. The underground had forgotten their name, but they were still here, shadows of what they used to be, remnants of the most powerful trueblood that ever existed.

Until one of them was born two decades ago. Not the terrifying ghost of something once all-powerful, but a new trueblood, awakened two years ago, just a fledgling of something that could devour the world one day.

Echo was looking at Riley Weaver through the scope of his sniper riffle, posted in an empty apartment for his surveillance. The young man had no attention to shoot, not when the consequences would be so dramatic for everyone involved. Valentines could feel killing intents, bullets had more chance to bounce on an ogre than anything else, and most truebloods would heal from a wound so superficial. As for remnants, if Riley survived, everyone in the building would become a meal fueling her healing, or she would live on as the rest of her siblings, impossible to kill.

So Echo waited, learning to know his prey. Nothing was all white or all black. They were too human for that. She had had barely changed since her awakening in college, a woman with long dark hair, black eyes who did not show anything, and a look on her face as if she wasn't quite here. Maybe because she was seeing more than most. Maybe because, she was a predator in a land of preys, so those people around her might have been as real as groceries in a supermarket to her.

Riley Weaver was a killer. Riley Weaver had saved many people.

Riley Weaver couldn't feel emotions to their full extent due to the nature of her hunger, leaving her numb and always in control. Riley Weaver loved fiercely and her wrath, when summoned, knew no end.

Riley Weaver was solitary by choice and nature. Riley Weaver had parents who knew nothing about the underground and what she really was, and a friend for whom she was ready to sacrifice everything.

Echo felt no pleasure in what he was about to do. It was simply necessary, and if he allowed himself to think about Riley the classmate, he might even have conceded she was just a victim of circumstances.

None of them chose this life. They had both known the embrace of a remnant, might be the only two people alive knowing what it was like to live with something that fed on their souls. Their situations were alike without being identical, far from it, but the result was here. They had been broken. They had survived. And they were stronger thanks to it.

His phone rang, interrupting the strange melancholia which had taken him over. The name on the screen cancelled it altogether, and he had to consciously suppress a smile.

''Echo,'' India called, and this simple word brought delight. ''I hate to ruin someone's fun but a little bird told me you were stalking a certain trueblood.''

Every word brought the familiar quiet bliss he had learned to associate with his savior. It soothed him, brought him peace, and he would have done every thing to stay in his good graces.

He also knew it was not sincere, simply the manifestation of her power on him.

He didn't care. It was real enough for him.

He moved around, his muscles sighing with relief now that he was interrupting a stillness which had lasted for hours. He could do worse, his body changed by arcanes, and even if he could still register it, pain did not have the same hold over him. Physical discomfort came as numbness now, not as suffering.

''Our new element wants her chance before you intervene,'' India explained. ''You're needed elsewhere.''

''It's not a problem.''

Riley was his. All of the heroes in the world could try to take her down, he would still be the only one to succeed.

 

*

  
  


''Something is coming,'' Alexia said. ''I can't feel the pressure growing all around us. People with a lot of power are on the move, and since they are simply gifted and not awakened, I can't predict what they are doing.''

Riley just stared at her, her glass still in the air. Alexia had already ordered so she had arrived to a table full of different meals, a long time tradition of tasting everything that was on the menu, and Riley only had the time to greet her best friend and to barely sit.

''You couldn't wait five seconds before hitting me with the bad news ?''

Alexia raised her arms, as if asking 'What did you want me to do ?', which did not agreed with the appearance of rich young heiress she had adopted. From her creator clothes to her perfect hair and make up, every detail was carefully checked so the power she irradiated could be mistaken from the kind which came from money. Which was kind impressive since there was still a collection of ugly Christmas sweater in her wardrobe.

To Riley, she was golden. Once a burning beacon in the dark, she had turned into a cold fire, as powerful, and as nourishing though it would not come to that again.

Alexia whipped her blond hair like a shampoo model, and gave Riley a Colgate smile.

''Sorry, let me try again. How are you in this fine day ?''

''Perfect, as always. What about you ?''

''War is coming and it's a problem since you are among the prime targets. I like you living and breathing.''

Riley carefully selected a plate among the multitude of meals which had been ordered, and pushed it towards her best friends : ''Eat this. Hard to be full of dread when you're full of pastas.''

Alexia glared at her but she still ate, so it couldn't be that bad.

''You have no respect for my wisdom,'' she groaned while rolling some kind of black noodles around her fork.

''I have the utmost respect for your wisdom and yourself. I just have no patience whatsoever.''

Riley used to have the ability to care of potential doomsday crisis but her nerves had been repeatedly shot, so she replaced it with sarcasm.

There was always a new threat, a next problem, someone who decided they could kill her. She had survived every time. At this point, she just had to do it again and again until people got the lesson.

Riley stole some pastas in Alexia's plate. Not bad, but not worth the fuss, so she grabbed the duck cut into thin slices.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, filling their stomachs with delicious food so they would could focus on their talk. Instinct was especially strong with people like them and hunger was the most powerful one.

''Just be careful,'' Alexia threatened with her fork.

''I will be careful.''

''And feed enough. You're being too nice. I bet it's been ages since you've eaten a catcaller.''

Feeding was not a problem, be it with the missions or the indirect feeding, but those particular preys she used to diet on back when she was a destitute college student... It was a time when she had scruples, was painfully conscious of what she could inflict if she ever lost control, so she had learned hunting on her own. 'Fortunately', when you were a woman walking alone at night, a special kind of people tended to converge to you.

''I can't find any of them anymore,'' Riley complained. ''It's like my whole neighborhood got the word.''

Alexia patted her hand, so Riley changed subjects before her considerate bestie offered to find her someone to nibble on.

''If you're not too busy, Lucas is searching for someone fond of fires. Unaffiliated to any family or cabals, so hard to track.''

It certainly caught Alexia's attention. She leaned on the table, her chin on the back of her hand and a dreamy look in her eyes.

''The charming Lucas Valentine...'' Riley purred.

The other reason why Lucas never called Alexia.

''It's not my fault. There is something about Valentines that is just compelling. They love this label of heroes, saviors against the monsters, when they carry the words of the Depths on their very bones and cells.

 _Tastier_ , the geist summarized.

''As for your person of interest...'' Alexia slightly tilted her head, as if she was listening to a sound hidden by another noise. ''Young. A teenager, powerful but not awakened. Fire touched. So afraid. And a runaway, both senses of the word. I can almost sense him him fleeing right now, so afraid. I will keep my ears to the ground and send you a message next time he uses his gift.''

Riley smiled and Alexia immediately perked up, leaving whatever she was listening to go back to her friend.

Keira, their usual hostess, approached and stopped near their table. She checked periodically if they wanted anything else, if only because they were the only customers in the restaurant and had asked for privacy. They two women were used to booking the whole place during their lunches.

It was more pleasant. This way, Alexia was not distracted by what the others gourmets were hiding, and Riley could focus on the food in her plate instead of... Well, let's just say the other kind.

  
  


*

  
  


As he sat at the table in the break-room, filing papers and globally making sure his cabal did not collapse on itself, Mallory was musing about his second and bodyguard.

Lucas Blake had many faults, be it a lack of patience, the conviction he was superior to any soldiers Mallory could send him, if only because he was faster, stronger, and more efficient. Genuine troubles to connect with people because of his statute as a Valentine, which were the intimidating nobles of the truebloods. And so on. However, there was one thing about him that could not suffer any critic.

This man could cook. He seemed unable to actually express things like gratitude and approbation, and instead, quietly fed his team. The odors of spices were reaching Mallory's working spot and distracting him.

And not even some light teasing would pass his lips in fear of being deprived of the gourmet food.

''It's not because you're staring that it will be ready sooner,'' Lucas said without turning around. He did not need to, was probably hyper aware of every change in his environment as he was turning his back to Mallory. Atavistic instincts were hard to ignore. ''I was wondering something about Riley and the guard...''

''Kyle Lennart.''

Lucas shrugged, clearly not interested in the name. ''Is that ethic to let her nudge people ?''

Remnants could easily break someone's mind if they went too far. They fed on emotions and life, condemning their preys to a slow agony where the numbness gnawed at them, but starved one could leave an empty shell behind them in a second.

That's why Mallory had decided to check what she meant.

''I actually asked her to do it to me. This isn't dangerous.''

Lucas became really still, clearly holding in an urge to yell at Mallory for allowing a remnant to play with his soul, but food managed to stay his priority and Mallory escaped a thirty minutes lecture.

''What is it like ?'' Lucas asked instead, probably losing several of his lifespan by not calling him an idiot.

''Have you ever been warm and content in bed, a beautiful woman lying next to you ? And you feel so fine at this moment, you can almost touch happiness ?''

Lucas nodded.

''And then, she puts her cold feet on your leg, and this warm and fuzzy feeling just breaks apart as you feel betrayed. That's how it feels, except it's on your soul instead of on your leg. Awful, but not dangerous.''

Lucas winced at that, suppressing a shudder, and gave him an incredulous look. Before forgetting his horror and the usual light preceding some teasing shone in those grey eyes of his.

''So... You asked Riley to nudge you ?''

''Shut up Lucas.''

His employee laughed at him but it was not as if Mallory was expecting something like respect from the man he could send to a seminary on trust in workplace, maybe one with those nice exercises where people let themselves fall to be caught by their partner.

The Valentine appeared to sense the danger and sent him a suspicious look. Mallory was probably saved from being chased out the kitchen by Lucas' phone who chose to ring at this precise moment. He frowned when he saw the caller.

''...On my way,'' Lucas said after a pause. ''Wait for me.''

''It's Riley. Alexia just sensed the gifted, on the docks, and that means he is using his power. I have to go.''

Mallory started to rise up, his knee clenching, stiff but not painful. He was in one of his good days.

''Stay here,'' Lucas ordered.

Mallory ignored him and grabbed his cane.

''It's fire, Lucas. What do you think it can do to me ?''

Lucas did not move, and there was something about the way he focused completely on Mallory that made the latter want to stay still and to pretend he was not there. This was a facet he would have never showed in front of his team, afraid of send them running for their life.

Mallory walked towards him, and when he was about to collide, Lucas moved swiftly out of the way, more flowing than walking.

''I have a bad feeling,'' Lucas admitted.

''We just have to be careful, then,'' Mallory smiled.

His friend hesitated.

''You're wasting time, Lucas,'' Mallory teased him lightly as he left the room. Of course, Lucas was five steps behind him.

His bodyguard growled, the sound low and vicious in his throat and it gave Mallory goosebumps, even though he knew Lucas would never hurt him.

Better not to push the predator at his back.

  
  


*

  
  


When they arrived on the docks, the air was scorching, burning anyone who dared to breathe from the inside, and there were no signs of any guards.

There was also no sign of Riley.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley might be late to her appointment. Far too late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: mass shooting

  
  


At no point had Riley intended to track down a pyromane. She had simply warned Lucas, and the latter had assumed she was on her way like a cowboy cop from a serie. There were two reasons why she had not corrected this assumption. First, Lucas and her usually did not work together. His team was not comfortable with her and what she could do, she was not as physically apt as them, and it was usually overkill, so if Lucas wanted her on a mission, it meant he was on edge. Second, and the most important reason, by the time Riley realized she had been accidentally drafted, Lucas had hung up the phone and she didn't want to call him back.

As she was about to leave, Alexia grabbed her wrist, all five fingers sinking into the flesh, almost painful. She did not say anything for a moment, not even looking at her. Until she did, and there was confusion and worry in her eyes.

''Don't go,'' her best friend said and it was the first time in years she seemed scared. ''I have a bad feeling about this.''

Riley waited. Alexia's gift was something precise and instantaneous. Either she knew something, or she did not. Watching her trying to analyze the informations that were somehow brought to her was not only strange, it meant something was really wrong.

The grip became painful. Riley didn't think Alexia realized it as she dived within herself, this place where one should not spend too much time unless one was willing to take the risk to lose themselves.

''There is something I can't see,'' Alexia said and rage saturated every word. ''Something is hidden from me. That means they are here.''

The silver light Riley had learned to ignore flare up, answering to the sheer revulsion possessing her. Someone has insulted everything Alexia was, and they would die for it.

''I'm coming with you,'' she decided. ''And I will crush those mutts one by one.''

Riley considered it, for maybe two seconds : ''What about no ? You're a collateral damage in becoming,'' she reminded Alexia.

Grand declaration of war were lovely but actual logic was better.

''I can...'' Alexia tried to say.

''No, you can't. I either have to fight while worrying about one of the only person I care about, I get hurt because of it, and you die because I feed on you ; or I am not careful during a stressful situation and I sip on you like an Ice Tea on a hot day.''

Alexia looked by the window, something vicious in those grey eyes of her. She wanted to hurt them. She felt violated, and needed to purge the awful feeling by hurting someone so bad no one else would try too.

Her friend closed her eyes. When she opened them, the glint was still there, but subdued as Alexia was controlling it instead of the opposite.

''Fine,'' she said quietly before fiercely hugging Riley.

The two women usually hugged each other as a greeting, quick embraces that had nothing to do with this one. Instead of the joy of seeing each other and the instant comfort it brought, this one had more strength, as if Alexia really didn't want to let go.

Riley hugged back just as fiercely, but she was the one who ended it. She needed to be on the move.

''Stay safe,'' she ordered Alexia with a smile.

''I have to ! Who will save you from yourself if I'm not here anymore ?''

The smile dropped as soon as she left the restaurant. She let the familiar hunger rise, eating her doubts, her concerns, anything that could distract her. The cold spread, searching for anything that wasn't at its place, in the middle of the swarming energy brought by the life of the city.

Only habit allowed her to find them, half a dozen of them, all settled to fight something like her.

_You can't run but you can hide._

That was the rule when remnants were concerned. They were unstoppable, but could be tricked with the right artifacts. The burning lights Riley had learned to associate with the life of human beings could be hidden, and most remnants would just keep going since they were indiscriminate in their feeding.

Ascalon had started to do special tags for all the agents who required them when she had been hired. They felt safer hiding for Riley, and she had never mentioned to them she had learned to bypass this trick. Where people passed, they left the traces of their activities, of their emotions, tiny particles of warmth she had learned to feed on. The tags hid her potential preys, letting soul shaped void in the field of her perception. Not as easy to see, far from it actually, but she had a good idea of their position when she had the time to focus.

As for the reasons why she never talked about it... Well, she wouldn't trouble her coworkers with details like the full extent of her abilities.

Her bike was down the street, and where she could feel those pockets of void. Fight or fall back ? She didn't know how many they were, and if they could block Alexia's perception, it meant they had powerful gifts.

_You can kill them._

Of that, she had no doubt. She could kill anyone if she tried hard enough, consequences be damned. But did she have the time ? There was someone out there who could summon fire at a moment notice and people appeared especially flammable around him.

Leave now, fight another day, then.

She ignored her bike, though not without regret, and she ignored the ambush waiting for her and walked to a subway entrance. Mallory had enough safe houses, storage boxes and global keeps for her to find another vehicle. She lost herself within the crowd, the urban fauna giving her a perfect cover.

Those who hunted her followed after a moment of hesitation.

It was alright, she expected it. They would wait for another opportunity, when she would be isolated. Thankfully, New York and its constituents were on her side and were not about to give her space any time soon. She had to shoulder her way in order not to be left drifting by the human flow.

Keeping an eye on the hidden presences, she reached for her phone. Lucas would want to know about this. He might maybe even be useful and tell her who Mallory and him had pissed off these days.

There was no signal.

Riley ceased simply paying attention to the changes in her surroundings and actually observed them. A man in a suit raising his phone up and down. A woman not looking in front of her and frowning as she looked at her screen. And more of them, all of them making these displeased expressions a 21th century human being acquired when their phone stopped working for no reason.

If she wasn't the only one, it meant a phone jammer.

If they were prepared for cancelling every communication here, it meant the unspoken rule of the underground was about to be bend : you shall not show your true form in broad daylight.

Riley might have made a grave mistake in seeking refuge here. She sharpened her will, and the geist inside her indicated the closest target. She had to act fast and be as precise as possible. She followed the trace of the soul-shaped void, and immediately knew she had found it as she saw someone gliding instead of walking, full of this beautiful predatory grace.

A strong woman. That was her first thought. Riley could actually see the muscles on her arms. Tall, her blond hair braided away from her face, a duffel bag hanging from the tips of her fingers as if it was weightless, there was an air of absolute confidence about her, the kind of pose one couldn't fake. She really thought nothing could touch or endanger her.

As Riley spotted her, the blonde winked at her...

Riley reached within herself and this cold dark place, grabbing the glacial power. At the same time, the world around her became cold as she drained any warmth, any trace of energy of her surrounding, all of it in less than a second.

… And she reached unbelievably fast inside her bag,

A screen of mist appeared right behind her as she was fleeing, the transparent energy absorbing the impact of the first bullet and breaking into nothingness in the same breath. Riley kept feeding several screens, awfully aware that they weren't strong enough to be a decent shield.

She ducked behind one of the half walls of a newspaper kiosk. The world went insane as people realized what was happening and ran for their life. Fear and pure panic spread through the air, distracting Riley as the geist's mouth watered at all this glorious food.

A bullet almost passed the wall, above her head since she was crouching and trying to shrink into the floor, but it was one hell of a reminder.

_Hold the shield. Whatever you do, keep holding it._

She channeled every bit of her power into the multitude of mist screens, pain bursting inside her mind as she reached into her core. It hurt so much, and every bullet slowed down by the mist made it worst.

_Still, it beats dying._

She only had to wait. There would be a moment when the blonde would be out of bullets, a tiny window of opportunity, and...

The noise finally stopped. _Now_.

Riley got out of her hiding spot, just to see what the hell was happening, and she wasn't disappointed. The blonde has discarded her weapon, probably understanding she has lost the advantage surprise brought, and she was running towards Riley, impossibly fast, a kind of run so powerful she would have probably be able to break through an armored door.

What a lovely target.

Pain burst behind Riley's eyes as a handful of mist blasted in the direction of the shooter, but she didn't care, a savage smile on her face. Right before the impact, she had the time to see the shooter's eyes widened. Surprise, bitch.

The arm the shooter managed to put in front of her didn't do her much good as it was crushed in a mess of white and red and she flaw backwards, propelled by the blast, while she screamed in pain. Riley drank on it, but was surprised not to have more. When she used mist on someone, it was usually lethal.

And she had a strict rule about not letting anyone who ever saw her using mist staying alive longer than necessary.

People around her were screaming and running for their lives, understanding just now how frail their peace and security really were. To Riley's sense, it was as if the whole underground station had caught on fire, and she fed on it, letting it flood the pain left in her mind.

But the shooter's mind resisted, something furious and wild opposing her. That meant she needed more time to break this will, and she was surrounded. No time to waste.

The cold spread around her, wanting more, and the light flickered as she focused. Not the kind of energy she liked but she could feed on it. With a last effort of concentration, every electrical lights in the place shut down.

Riley sprinted, adrenaline rushing through her veins and making her weightless. She sent another mass of mist towards the shooter and the echo of the energy rippled through her as the hit landed. _Still not feedback, no delicious brought by her kill._ She had obviously lost her edge.

_Well, third time is the charm._

She moved it for the kill and someone rammed into her. She saw it coming but didn't have the time to react. She should have landed on her face but something sharp, claws, grabbed her and tear into her flesh. She screamed, one part pain for three part fury and the geist did the same. The cold stabbed at the fool who had gotten so close to a remnant, crushing his defenses and devouring the life in an instant.

She pushed him back, her wounds already healing, and the husk of a human being turned into his real form as Death claimed him. Others were approaching, getting closer and she kept running, diving into the mass of panicked people.

Madness had taken over. The too familiar sound of gunshot had provoked a knee-jerked reaction and the sudden darkness had turned the general chaos into a maelstrom. Riley had seriously underestimated what would happen to a 5,4 foot tall girl as she was shaken around from every direction, tackling her way in order not to be smashed by the human tidal wave.

Riley was swept away by the various movements inside the crowd, more focused on standing upright and being on the move than anything else. If she stopped moving, she fell, and no one would stop for her. She would be stepped on by a human stampede and die. She could feel lights flaming up then dissolving into the air as others met this fate.

She could hardly follow the trace of her hunters, not when the geist inside her was loosing its mind at the All-you-can-eat buffet, but she had just neutralized their sight and was being twirled around in a crowd of hysterical New-Yorkers. She should be 'safe' as long as she got out of here.

Riley took an elbow to the ribs, and at some point, someone started incoherently screaming near her ear. Someone else even tried to grab her, rough hands grabbing her arm and her hip. None of them were gifted, and were quickly dispatched with a well placed shoulder and elbow, and for the last one, a vicious headbutt that crunched the offender's nose.

Suddenly, her foot touched something slippery, and her leg immediately went one way, the rest of her went another way and for a moment, though her feet still technically touched the floor, she was airborne. She landed on the floor which was suddenly covered by a thin layer of ice. Sadly, she was far from being the only one, and she scrambled in every direction to avoid being buried alive by the rest of the unfortunate victims. She wasn't especially efficient.

For a terrifying second, she was pressed by everything and everyone, gasping for air, but there was a mass on her chest, and though the oxygen was here, she couldn't access it. She started pushing everyone out of her way, some people screaming in pain as she hit them with all her strength but she didn't care. She needed to get on her feet, or she would die.

Someone walked on her hand and she snapped, the cold spreading around her and people suddenly deciding to get the hell out of her way.

_Good._

And as they did, the sudden void around her signaled her position to those who hunted her.

_Oh crap._

Riley was many things, but her physical abilities were close to those of a regular human being. A human being who should jog more often and who should have taken Lucas's offer to go to the communal training. She couldn't compete with enhanced gifted.

She could feel them run towards her. Only confused images because everything blurred together and seeing what wasn't there was a pain. She didn't calm down the geist, letting it have free reigns.

_Focus._

She could feel them closing in but didn't know their position. By the time they bypassed the crowd, it would already be too late. She couldn't let them touch her. One in close range was a challenge, two working as a team might be her end.

Riley took a deep breath.

_See._

Maybe because of luck, maybe because of despair, but at that moment, she could clearly see where one of them was. Clear as day, a spot of white paper in a sea of ink. Her eyes set on the woman, a blur running at her. She drained the energy around her, so full that she was close to euphoria, and she drew within herself, more power ready at her call. They weren't the only one to play dirty, and as soon as they had attacked in public, she had been ready to fully retaliate.

The blast of mist didn't only take the woman out, throwing her like a rag doll, but also got the people behind her and she felt one more death because of the sheer strength of the impact.

She winced, though she didn't quite regret it. That was why she usually used it on inanimate objects on her road and why she was so vexed someone had managed to survive two of those same blasts.

The other one rushed at her, and she only had the time to raise her arm so he wouldn't access her neck and all the lovely arteries on it.

Riley expected claws, like all the enhanced predators she had met.

She certainly wasn't expecting him to grab her arm and the bones to shatter as if they were made of glass.

Strangely, surprise slapped her in priority, pain almost secondary. Maybe it was the shock, maybe it was the adrenaline which had been rushing into her metabolism for ten minutes, exploding in her at the moment she had seen the machine gun.

Either way, he didn't expect her to basically fall on him instead of trying to flee. And he didn't expect her to lean into a kiss.

Their lips didn't even touch, but the proximity was enough, just an exchange of breath and it opened a conduct. Like a glorious gate opening to reveal a shining treasure, the geist roared to life, and welcomed the wonderful life that flew to him. In a second only, there was nothing left for her to take.

The pain exploded in her arm, her mind refusing to ignore it any longer. She bit down a scream, tears rolling on her cheeks, and she felt the bones resetting, mending, thanks to the life she had taken. It was excruciating. Why did it always have to hurt so much ?

Why did people always try to kill her ?

_What did she have to do so they will learn ?_

She pushed through the pain, letting the wrath fueled by the agony pulsing all over her body ice. Someone was looking at her, others were still pursuing her, and she couldn't lose her head.

A man that had watched the whole scene from afar was gasping, eyes wide as the fighter dropped at her feet, dying from the shock of having his life drained out massively and so quickly, strangely similar to the most excruciating blood loss. She winked at him and he tried to run away from her for the crowd to jerk him in the other direction. Tough luck.

A new wave of energy rushed through the crowd, boosting Riley's healing but that meant something else was happening. She looked around. And did a double take.

People were flying.

Above the surface of the crowd, unlucky subway users were literally thrown, someone having obviously decided that the best way to cross the crowd was to get people away from them. Riley decided that she didn't need to know who it was and what was happening, so she ran into the opposite direction, holding her arm. It hurt, though it was so much better than a moment ago, but it would have been worse if she had let it hanging.

Someone followed her.

_You need to get out. You either stop playing and kill everyone here, or you run before one of them is lucky._

Riley put the crowd between the hunters and her, in the only place even people panicking and running for their lives tried not to approach. Near the rail.

And a train was incoming.

_Time to do something insane._

Every learned behavior since childhood screamed at her to stop what she was doing _right now_.

Riley didn't listen and jumped on the rail. Someone screamed behind her, the sound conveying pure horror. She didn't look back, still sensing this _nothing_ following her. Instead, she kept an eye on where she was putting her foot.

_Don't electrocute yourself. Don't electrocute yourself. Don't electrocute yourself._

The train was incoming. She felt the vibrations as soon as she landed, and he was coming closer and closer. Too close. This might have been her worse idea yet. But an optimist could say she would probably outdo such a giant mistake.

_I won't make it._

She was running so fast her feet barely touched the ground.

_You have to._

She jumped, pure survival instinct fueling her and her hands grabbed the railroad.

Her right arm was still raw and weak.

 

*

  
  


Victor's body stopped right before he rammed into a moving train, all his muscles screaming as they went from 'ready to jump' to 'STOP'. Northern Lights had made him stronger and sturdier but vehicles moving at high speed usually won against gifted.

He had lost the remnant. He knew he had as soon as she had jumped, because she was either reduced to red paste somewhere down there, or she had managed to flee as the train offered a perfect and durable cover. And honestly, at this point, Victor was fine with either option.

They had said they would be protected and that the remnant would never see them coming but she had killed them one by one, a flash of glowing blue eyes in the middle of the crowd combined to a cold death. They had said she needed time to feed, and that the distraction would be at their advantage, but she had others powers, powers that had allowed her to survive a bullet barrage, shut down the light, and to wreck a fucking Valentine.

God, the Valentine. She was the only reason why he had followed the remnant and not demanded to call off the operation. A Valentine was an asset worth everything so they have rushed to her as soon as she hit the ground.

Romeo had payed her consideration with her throat open and desperately fighting for her life even though she didn't have a chance. When Letha Valentine had finished, perfectly healed and something feral possessing her, Victor had known he would stay alive as long as he was useful, or she would something else to use him for.

Victor shivered, the aftermath of the adrenaline. He had to go back to the new asset of Northern Lights. They were gifted who had passed a contract with a cabal to obtain more power, while she was a trueblood and a hero of the underground. She was more valuable than the whole team.

The train finally went away and as he suspected, no sign of the remnant, not even on the rails. He would have to call Control to warn them she was probably on her way to help Lucas Valentine and Mallory.

Tried to gulp down but his throat closed, along with the rest of his body as his every of his cells just went still.

He realized Riley Weaver had never left.

Victor frenetically looked around him, but she was nowhere to be found.

Everything disappeared except the ultimate terror. He wanted to run, to scream, to do anything in the vain hope he could distance the dread but he was frozen in place. Something enormous holding him in its claws, gnawing at him.

 _Something is eating me alive,_ he realized.

He had the time to take a step. Only one.

  
  


*

  
  


Gillian was running at full speed the flight of stairs, the rare employees working on a week-end calling her in fear, but she didn't slow down. She was the oldest member of the cabal, she had to take charge, had to make sure they survive all this.

Ascalon had expanded across several states, one of the largest cabal of the country, and since they couldn't deal with all of the problems from New York without a delay, centers had been implemented. Places where you could not only call for help, but also learn to work with your gift with volunteers, to meet your neighbors, and to form a community.

Everyone of them was now under attack.

Gillian jumped into Mallory's office, almost pausing because it felt so wrong. It was Mallory and Lucas' domain, but she knew what she had to do.

Of course, it should have been Mallory or Lucas' role, but they weren't here, even Riley wasn't here, and she didn't want to think about why the three more powerful members of her cabal suddenly weren't answering their phone. Gillian took a deep breath, refusing to think about the worse. Mallory was guarded by a demon and a hero, they had to all be fine.

She grabbed the red computer in the drawer, typed the password, and activated the mayday protocol. When she was finished, every person who had placed themselves under the protection of Ascalon had received precise instructions on the burner phone they were given on the day they signed in.

And they also knew that all of them were now at war.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hesitated before writing this chapter because of the shooting in a public place. Yes, it's what happened in Haunted, and no, I am not out of idea. I just realized this is a reality that can happen again and again and in this case, it clearly shows what some truebloods think of regular people.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading the chapter.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos always make me smile.


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